Birds

Well, here they are, the fabric birds that kept Jessica and I up until way after midnight. We love them, we paired two pieces of fabric to create the bird which is made up of three pieces and the loop. It's so fun to mix and match funky fabric, but it would be just as sweet with more traditional fabric. Hope you like them!






This morning Jessica said she has a "birdover," (hangover of the bird variety.) Today I'm busy packing, we're leaving early for Michigan tomorrow morning.

Cousins

We've been enjoying having Jessica, Pieter and Anneke visit us these last few days. Jessica was visiting Andre' in Washington DC, and after her visit here she will go up to Boston to attend Andre's graduation from Harvard. Congratulations Andre'!

The kids have been having a nice time together. Pieter is full of stories and interesting observations, and Anneke is almost two, and talking a lot.
Just before supper today, Calvin's tooth fell out. It's been wiggly for a while and it finally came out.
Tonight Jessica and I plan to make birds out of fabric. If they turn out I will post a picture tomorrow.

Memorial Day 2008

We camped in Swartswood State Park in Northern New Jersey over the long Memorial Day weekend. We went with a wonderful group of families from church and had a great time. All together we had 16 kids and 12 adults.

We enjoyed good food, a fun day at the beach, and lots of time just talking and catching up with friends. It was especially wonderful to see how nicely all the kids played together. Tristan and Calvin spent a lot of their time on their bikes, riding around from campsite to campsite. On our last night all the kids put on a talent show that was enjoyed by all.

Now that we're home, I'm surrounded by piles of laundry. A small price to pay for such a nice weekend. Next, we're looking forward to spending some time in Michigan with Grandma Sanneke and Grandpa John.

Happy Birthday Robert

Today is Robert's 41st birthday. He is such a good daddy, husband and provider for our family!

Cub Scouts

Tristan recently joined Cub Scouts and yesterday he took part of the Space Derby. The Scouts each made a rocket out of wood and painted and decorated it. They then attached their rocket to a hanger on a track made of fish line, wound up the propeller, and watched it go.

We had a great evening. Tristan is very happy that his two best buddies, Steven and Jacob, are in his Bear Den. And the icing on the cake: Tristan learned that he is not allergic to Moon Pies, a very sugary yummy treat, the likes of which usually contain dairy.


The Cub Scout Promise: I promise to do my best, to do my duty to God and my country, to help other people, and to obey the Law of the Pack.

Mothers Day

Happy Mothers Day and Prettige Moederdag to all the mothers in my life!

It's good to be a mom to three little guys. This morning I was served breakfast in bread: coffee, orange juice, croissant with blueberry jam, toast with honey and a banana. Too much to finish in just one sitting, but delicious and quite a treat.



Tristan and Calvin sang in church today with the kids choir. There's nothing so sweet as the sound of kids singing. For the first time, the kids sat in the choir pews where the adult choir normally sits. They seemed so grown up.

This evening, if the weather holds, Robert will grill our supper. A salmon burger for me, and brats for Robert and the boys. We'll also enjoy the the first "Jersey Fresh" corn-on-the cob of the season. Yum...

Speech

Noah had an intake interview with the special needs preschool in our township. We met with a speech therapist, a learning specialist and a social worker. While I spoke with the social worker, Noah was being tested in the areas of receptive and expressive speech and gross and fine motor skills. The township has four special education preschool classrooms: two for kids with autism, one self contained classroom for kids with various needs, and an integrated classroom where half the kids are typical in development, and the other half have mild delays. I wasn't sure where I wanted Noah to end up, it would be either the self-contained classroom where he would receive more individual speech therapy, or the integrated room which is a lot like a typical preschool classroom.

It was decided that the integrated classroom would be the best for Noah. His receptive language skills (words he understands,) are on target for his age, and he will benefit from having lots of positive speech role models. He will also have speech therapy two times a week, as well as a teacher who is certified in speech.

I am so thankful Noah has been accepted into this program. I know he will love preschool, and the extra speech he will receive will help him as he continues to improve his expressive speech.

Pampering

Monday, my last day with Emily in Olympia, we were pampered the whole day. We started with coffee and a scone, stopped to have our nails done, and then enjoyed a wonderful full-hour massage. Oh, what a life. Later we met Mum, Abigail, Chris, and Reed (Chris's dad) for lunch in downtown Olympia followed by a visit to one of Emily's friends Scrapbooking store. Our last stop of the day was at the Bread Peddler, where we enjoyed lovely French pastries, bread and cookies.

My Seattle Trip

I just returned home after a long weekend visiting Emily and Abigail in Washington. The occasion was Brooke's baptism, and as godmother I was thrilled to be able to be there.

I arrived Saturday morning and Mum, Abigail and Emily picked me up. We went straight from the airport to Seattle where we went to Pike Place Market in downtown Seattle. We had lunch at a pub, and then set off wandering through the market, admiring the beautiful flowers, colorful vegetables, and handiwork from various artists.



Sunday was a beautiful sunny day. Brooke looked so sweet in her baptismal gown and little cap. The service was very meaningful and we are all so thankful for little Brooke Emily and her family.

Here I am with my beautiful goddaughter and big-sister Madison, aren't they sweet?

More to come...